-Caveat Lector- Friday September 14 1:11 AM ET Congress May Limit Suits Against Airlines By Adam Entous WASHINGTON (Reuters) - At the urging of American and United airlines, congressional leaders said on Thursday that they were drafting legislation to give the carriers some protection from possible lawsuits over this week's terror attacks. Lawmakers and aides said legislation limiting the companies' liability could come to the floor of both the House of Representatives and the Senate in coming days. Four commercial airliners, two operated by UAL Corp.'s (NYSE:UAL - news) United and two by AMR Corp.'s (NYSE:AMR - news) American, were hijacked on Tuesday. Two crashed into the landmark twin towers of New York's World Trade Center, demolishing them. A third slammed into the Pentagon (news - web sites) outside Washington, and the fourth crashed into a field near Pittsburgh. Soon after the attacks, representatives of the two airlines approached key lawmakers with legislative language that would provide American and United with sweeping protection from liability, congressional aides said. But Sen. John McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, said the proposal floated by the airlines was ``way too broad'' and lawmakers were crafting legislation of their own that would provide far more limited protection from lawsuits. ``What they were talking about is a great overreach,'' McCain told Reuters of the airlines' initial proposal, adding that they were seeking almost blanket protection from lawsuits. ''We think they may need some protections but certainly not the language we saw,'' he said. LIMITED TO PASSENGERS According to aides, McCain and other lawmakers on the Commerce Committee were drafting a proposal that would limit class-action lawsuits, as well as restricting legal action by people who were not on board the hijacked planes. That would include thousands of people injured in the World Trade Center or by falling debris. But aides stressed that the families of those who died aboard the flights could still file suit under the proposed legislation. House leaders said they were working in concert with the Senate on the proposal after holding talks with airline executives. ``I do not think that airlines should be held accountable,'' said House Republican Leader Dick Armey of Texas. ``It seems to me that when they lost control of their aircraft, they lost control of their liability.'' A top Senate aide said quick action was needed because a rush of lawsuits could potentially ``bankrupt'' the nation's two largest airlines. ``This was an act of war, so it's obvious the airlines should have some protection,'' the aide added. White House budget director Mitch Daniels said the administration had yet to ``settle on a position'' on the proposed legislation. An estimated 266 passengers and crew members died when the four airliners crashed on Tuesday. Overall, the attacks left about 5,000 people either dead or missing at New York's World Trade Center and close to 200 people either killed or unaccounted for at the Pentagon. UAL did not answer calls seeking comment, and AMR was not immediately available for comment. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'�with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds�is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html";>Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/";>ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
